The immense chakra pouring from Meihui left Naruto and Sasuke dumbfounded. Meihui was already strong under normal circumstances, but in this state, he completely shattered their illusions.
They had thought that learning a few new tricks would let them swagger through the shinobi world unchallenged. Now, though, it seemed they had celebrated a little too soon.
The more terrifying something was, the more they needed to overcome it and face it bravely.
It was as though a gift for combat etched into Naruto and Sasuke's bones had awakened. Their opponent might be powerful, but they still wanted to give it a shot.
As Naruto and Sasuke fought Meihui, their adrenaline surged, and they grew more excited with every exchange. Their taijutsu bout was all solid, flesh-pounding blows-except Naruto and Sasuke were the ones getting beaten up by Meihui.
Even so, the two never tired of it, because they could constantly feel their strength improving.
Naruto and Sasuke already worked together with remarkable coordination. Whenever Sasuke swung his sword, Naruto would suddenly dart in for a sneak attack, but Meihui blocked every attempt.
Seeing this, Sasuke immediately infused his Kusanagi Sword with lightning-nature chakra, while Naruto formed a spinning sphere in his hand.
Meihui turned up the pressure on them again.
"Rat Two, release. Rat Three, release. Rat Four, release. Rat Five, release."
Meihui instantly released four more of the Rat Seals on his body. The chakra coating his body was almost dense enough to see with the naked eye.
"Gulp." Naruto swallowed audibly, while beads of cold sweat broke out across Sasuke's forehead.
There was no helping it. Even so, they had no choice but to press on.
"Chidori!"
"Take the Kidney!"
The two flanked Meihui from the front and back, hoping to attack him with the energy generated when